ISS, Institute for Security Studies
Why eastern DRC’s peace efforts are vital to containing Ebola
24th June 2026 Conflict, mistrust and closed borders are hindering the containment of Ebola in DRC and neighbouring countries. The deadly Bundibugyo strain of the... →
Anti-migrant myths that have been allowed to fester in South Africa
22nd June 2026 Rising xenophobia is fuelled by narratives that woefully and wilfully misrepresent SA’s socio-economic problems and immigration and refugee law. As... →
South Sudan’s sexual violence crisis: more than a wartime phenomenon
22nd June 2026 The persistent crisis exposes serious failures by the state, peacekeeping missions and justice mechanisms tasked with protecting civilians. In... →
How voluntary and safe are Burundian refugee returns from Tanzania?
19th June 2026 The coercive repatriation of Burundian refugees risks reproducing cycles of displacement ahead of Burundi’s 2027 elections. Since December 2025,... →
Will global turmoil push Africa’s leaders to prioritise agriculture?
18th June 2026 The path to transforming agriculture is clear; the challenge is getting leaders to appreciate the value of agri-prosperity. The Iran War is the... →
Is Africa becoming a new arena for adaptive drone warfare?
17th June 2026 The spread of Ukrainian technology and expertise could alter the balance between state and non-state armed groups across Africa. Ukraine has become... →
ISWAP’s next frontier: Darak in northern Cameroon
15th June 2026 Located on the borders of Cameroon, Nigeria and Chad, Darak is valuable to local and national economies – and to violent extremists. For over a... →
Should SA renew its anti-piracy operation in the Mozambique Channel?
12th June 2026 Despite the navy’s severe resource constraints, Operation Copper seems to have been continued for political rather than practical reasons. Since... →
Eswatini’s ominous quiet
12th June 2026 Five years since violent protests shattered Eswatini’s calm, King Mswati III has done nothing to address the causes. In April this year, King... →
Debate about SA’s falling murder levels masks a deeper crisis
11th June 2026 To keep murders on a downward trajectory, South Africa must prioritise and fund interventions that prevent family violence. The number of murders... →
AU peacekeepers face deadly risks and limited recognition
10th June 2026 Peacekeepers injured or killed in AU missions remain largely invisible. They deserve recognition, transparency and proper compensation.... →
Elections 2026: is Zambia’s democratic success story beginning to fray?
8th June 2026 There is a danger that voters see the August election outcome as shaped by legal manoeuvring rather than the ballot. Zambia is one of the few... →
JNIM’s blockade tactics threaten West Africa’s trade corridors
4th June 2026 Recent terror attacks across Mali have intensified JNIM’s blockades of vital transport routes connecting port cities to Sahelian capitals. On 25... →
Industrial-scale meth production poses new security risks for Nigeria
3rd June 2026 Southwestern Nigeria has largely been spared major security threats – now it faces a troubling convergence of drugs and terror. Nigeria’s National... →
Can South Africa afford to keep Starlink out?
2nd June 2026 Achieving the country’s ambitious goal of 100% broadband access by 2030 could require a trade-off between politics and connectivity. Starlink – the... →
Why military gains are not weakening the ADF in eastern DRC
1st June 2026 The ADF’s resilience stems from kidnapping economies, forced recruitment and governance failures that military operations cannot address alone.... →
The Gambia’s first Special Prosecutor: a non-Gambian?
29th May 2026 To achieve justice and reconciliation, the Special Prosecutor must ensure that accountability appears neither distant nor external to victims. On 9... →
Crackdown on Chad’s opposition threatens a return to one-party rule
28th May 2026 Rather than learning from Chad’s history of coups and deadly conflicts, current leaders seem determined to repeat the cycle. Just two weeks after... →
Will the US-Nigeria targeting of ISWAP’s deputy weaken terrorism?
27th May 2026 International and local experience shows that targeted leader killings tend to have more symbolic than practical impact. The joint Nigerian-United... →
Guinea’s May elections end its transition – but will they bring stability?
26th May 2026 Although authorities adhered to the ECOWAS timeline, Guinea’s return to democracy is mired in controversy. On 31 May, 6.8-million citizens will... →
Dear Mr President: to succeed, SA needs an excellent social development minister
25th May 2026 The department can no longer be treated as peripheral – its new minister must have empathy and a deep knowledge of social welfare. Dear President... →
Economic hardship drives Kenyans onto Russia’s brutal frontline
21st May 2026 High youth unemployment exposes young Kenyans, like thousands across Africa, to exploitation and false promises of lucrative jobs abroad. Kenya has... →
More instability for Somalia as another election deadline lapses
20th May 2026 Only a gradual consensus-based process can reconcile Somalia’s competing political systems and avert repeated election crises. When Somalia’s... →
US-Africa migrant deals ramp up as government transparency fails
20th May 2026 More secretive deals to accept deported third-country migrants from the US degrade democracy and don’t serve African countries. Throughout 2026... →
Somali piracy returns: a warning from the Western Indian Ocean
18th May 2026 Joint naval patrols are stretched thin by the Middle East crisis, but their ability to eradicate piracy was always limited. Piracy has re-emerged... →
Ruto and Macron sing a duet in Nairobi
18th May 2026 Did France’s first Africa summit outside the Francophonie reset its relations with the continent? For two decades, Paris has seemingly been trying... →
How the Iran war could derail Somalia’s fragile recovery
14th May 2026 Somalia faces more than spillover effects – these shocks are pushing the country’s long-term recovery further out of reach. The United... →
Can civilians fill the peacekeeping gap in eastern DRC?
12th May 2026 If formally recognised, unarmed civilian protection and community-based early warning can offer a path to sustaining stability and security amid... →
The optics, interests and limits of China’s tariff offer to Africa
11th May 2026 Without a collective approach from African states, China’s tariff-free market access will not be the silver bullet many expect. China’s decision to... →
Is Namibia's Nandi-Ndaitwah matching her anti-corruption rhetoric with action?
8th May 2026 The president has fired ministers and condemned graft as treason – yet the system enabling it remains intact. Namibian President Netumbo... →
With SAPS under scrutiny, what should SA interim police chief prioritise?
7th May 2026 Puleng Dimpane may only have a short time available, but she can still do things that strengthen the South African Police Service. On 23 April,... →
African champions chart the way on the Global Compact for Migration
5th May 2026 Seventeen African nations are pioneering global migration management, but will others follow their lead? Over 80% of people migrating in Africa... →
South Africa's road rage problem goes deeper than bad drivers
4th May 2026 Accumulated stress, inequality and normalised violence find expression on the road – and a firearm can turn misperception fatal. The fatal... →
Cape rerouting exposes South Africa’s maritime blind spots
29th April 2026 More ships are rounding the Cape, but ports, policy and strategy are not yet built to turn the surge into lasting gain. Rerouting around the Cape... →
The Hormuz chokepoint is threatening Africa's food supply
29th April 2026 Fertiliser disruption exposes a blind spot that farm-level policy has long ignored – but Africa holds the resources to fix it. Africa’s next food... →
Internet shutdowns won’t solve Central Africa’s political crises
28th April 2026 Silencing the internet during unrest buys governments time but corrodes the trust and economic foundations that stability requires. In Gabon,... →
Spat with Trump distracts from Pope Leo’s Africa tour
28th April 2026 The Pope used his Africa debut to address broader global issues – but left many local questions unanswered. Pope Leo XIVth’s 10-day African tour,... →
Niger-Benin: a narrow window for diplomatic reset
23rd April 2026 The political transition in Cotonou opens a window for regional de-escalation that the African Union should seize. Romuald Wadagni’s election as... →
A quiet US-AU deal that could reshape investment in Africa
22nd April 2026 The Trump administration and the AU have started a bold journey that could ‘flip the script’ on decades of development cooperation. The United... →
Why minerals-for-security deals won’t save the DRC
22nd April 2026 Resource bartering doesn’t deliver stability – it perpetuates institutional fragility and rarely builds public trust and legitimacy in African... →
Counter-terrorism lessons to avoid a Lake Chad Basin scenario in Borgu-Kainji
20th April 2026 Reactive counter-terrorism posture risks entrenching armed groups in a new corridor linking northwest to southwest Nigeria. Mass killings,... →
